After school on Saturday afternoon, Zhu Siqi did not hurry back to the mountain. He was afraid that Teacher Tan might go home that very afternoon, so he decided to wait and see first. Only then did he realize that this plan had occurred to him on the spur of the moment. Apart from the acupuncture needles he always carried, he hadn't brought along the special pills for soothing the meridians and promoting blood circulation.
He went to the sports field. Since Zhu Siqi had entrusted the rackets and volleyball to Zhu Aiguo for safekeeping, they were already there playing table tennis and badminton. No one was playing volleyball anymore.
At the table tennis table, they were playing a five-point rotation game—whoever lost stepped aside. When Wang Yu saw Zhu Siqi arrive, he immediately said, "Zhu Siqi, you'd better not join in. As soon as you play, you just sit there winning every round. It takes all the fun out of it. If you really want to play, fine—but you can only stay on for three rounds at most. What do you all think?"
Zhu Siqi's skills had improved so quickly that he no longer had any real opponents here, especially when he used slicing shots or topspin pulls—no one could return them.
"I'm just here to watch today. I don't plan to play. I've got something to do later," Zhu Siqi said. Hearing this, the others finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Although his eyes seemed to be following his classmates playing, he had already sensed Teacher Tan. He felt that Tan Tian seemed to be preparing to leave and thought, just as expected—otherwise he wouldn't know where to find him tomorrow. Then he noticed Tan Tian pushing a bicycle out of the office. Only then did Zhu Siqi realize he had overlooked something: Tan Tian was riding a bike, while he himself was on foot. Without using lightness kung fu, there was no way he could keep up—but he couldn't possibly display martial arts in public, especially on a road where there would surely be many people. He quickly asked his classmates:
"Does anyone know where Teacher Tan's home is?"
"I do," Zhang Bo replied.
"Where?"
"Qiaotou Village."
"Qiaotou Village? I don't know it. Is it far?" Zhu Siqi asked casually.
Zhang Bo immediately answered, "Pretty far. After leaving the school gate, follow that small road south. After about thirty li or so, you'll come to a river with a bridge. Cross the bridge, and you're there."
Zhu Siqi had heard exactly what he wanted to hear and now knew what to do.
After Tan Tian pushed his bicycle out of the school gate, Zhu Siqi waited a while before slowly making his way out as well. Instead of heading back to the mountain, he took the southern road. He didn't walk fast. After more than two hours, he reached the bridge Zhang Bo had mentioned. Crossing it, he saw a village. At that moment, he quickly activated the Yi Jin One-Origin Technique and altered his appearance. In no time at all, he looked like a young man in his twenties—so different that even Tan Tian wouldn't recognize him face to face. He then expanded his perception to its maximum range. Since the disguise wouldn't last long, he quickened his pace and walked through the small village.
He soon located Tan Tian's home: a two-story red-brick house. Tan Tian was in his mother's room, keeping her company and talking with her. Since Zhu Siqi had long been able to diagnose illnesses using perception, he took the opportunity to examine Tan Tian's mother from afar.
Zhu Siqi walked slowly, knowing that stopping outright might arouse suspicion. As he drew closer to Tan Tian's home, he gained a clearer understanding of her condition: severe muscle necrosis, broken meridians—it was indeed extremely difficult to treat, at least without true qi.
Having identified the cause, Zhu Siqi picked up his pace. He soon crossed back over the bridge again. Since it was already getting late, he could only return to the mountain for now.
The problem now was how to treat Tan Tian's mother without letting Tan Tian know. By modern medical standards, her illness was incurable. If people found out that one of Tan Tian's students had cured her, it wouldn't be long before the entire school—and even all of Santang Market—knew about him. That was not his intention. He only wanted to do good quietly, not live under others' astonished, admiring, or jealous gazes.
It seemed he had no choice but to rely on old-fashioned disguise techniques. His cultivation level simply wasn't high enough yet. If it were his master, the disguise could last more than a day. If he himself reached the sixth level, it could last two or three hours. At present, barely more than ten minutes was useless—his disguise would wear off before treatment was finished. And tomorrow wouldn't work either, because Tan Tian would definitely be home. He might fool strangers, but he would never deceive a teacher who knew him well.
Back on the mountain, the only thing to do at night was listen to the radio. There was no one to chat with.
He didn't go to sleep until the broadcast signed off with "Good night, dear listeners." He felt it had been a long time since he had properly meditated and entered a deep state of cultivation, so he decided to practice seriously tonight. Previously, since he had already reached the fifth level, his true qi circulated automatically along fixed routes—even while sleeping or walking. But when he deliberately guided it or meditated, the circulation sped up, producing more pronounced effects.
Recently, because of his master's departure, his mood had been poor. Meditating then might have risked internal deviation. Over the past two days, however, his spirits had improved greatly—he played every day and felt genuinely happy. In truth, smiling more often benefited both body and mind.
Zhu Siqi didn't realize all this. He only knew that tonight's cultivation went exceptionally well. He had already sensed signs of breaking through the fifth level last time. Tonight, without intending it, he might actually succeed. As his true qi circulated faster and faster, the number of cycles increased: thirty-six, seventy-two, one hundred and eight, two hundred and sixteen… When Zhu Siqi finally opened his eyes, it was already the afternoon of the next day.
He felt as if everything around him had become clearer. Even the leaves on the trees seemed alive. Activating his perception, he discovered that its range had expanded nearly tenfold. He knew he had finally broken through the fifth level and reached the sixth.
He leapt off the bed, feeling wonderfully refreshed and full of energy. Thinking of Tan Tian's mother, he felt relieved. No need for elaborate disguises now—two or three hours would be more than enough to treat her. At most, her condition would take only half an hour.
On Monday morning, he bought what he needed at the market. After school, he again asked Teacher Tan for leave. Seeing that Teacher Tan was still in low spirits, he knew the problem likely hadn't been resolved.
Back on the mountain, he made a banner from a piece of white cloth, writing on it: "Specialist in Difficult and Intractable Diseases."
The next day, he went to Qiaotou Village. Along the way, he found a bamboo pole and hung the banner on it. Upon entering the village, he altered his appearance into that of a man in his fifties or sixties, complete with wrinkles on his face and hands. With internal energy disguising him, no one could recognize him—he could even change his fingerprints.
"Treating difficult and intractable diseases! Ancestral secret remedies! Specializing in difficult cases!" he called out as he neared Tan Tian's house.
"If you don't believe me, bring out anyone in your family whose illness others couldn't cure and give it a try! Treating difficult and intractable diseases!"
Someone in Tan Tian's household heard the shouting and came out to look. Seeing it was a wandering healer, they hesitated. In the past, such healers had been invited to treat Tan Tian's mother, but without success. Still, Tan Tian's father, Tan Ming, always held onto a sliver of hope and would invite them in to take a look. Most healers, however, would shake their heads and leave—after all, if such a condition could be cured, why wander about instead of sitting at home collecting fees?
"Sir," Tan Ming said, "we happen to have a patient at home. Please come in and take a look."
This was exactly what Zhu Siqi had been waiting for. He immediately stopped calling out and said, "Bring the patient out. If I can't cure her, I won't charge anything."
"The patient is my wife. She's been paralyzed in bed and can't come out. Please come inside instead."
"Alright. Lead the way."
Inside Tan Tian's mother's room, Zhu Siqi saw her. Though he had already examined her two days earlier from afar, he pretended it was his first time seeing her. He asked her to extend her hand and placed three fingers on her pulse.
After a moment, he said to Tan Ming, "Your wife's condition is very serious. The muscle necrosis in her lower legs is severe, and the meridians are blocked."
Hearing such an accurate diagnosis, Tan Ming felt a spark of hope. "Then… can it still be treated?"
"For others, perhaps not," Zhu Siqi replied. "But I do have an ancestral secret method. We can try—though you shouldn't expect too much."
"Then please treat her quickly," Tan Ming urged. "She's been paralyzed for nearly ten years."
Zhu Siqi didn't want to attract attention, so he thought for a moment and said, "I can treat her, but you must agree to a few conditions. Is that acceptable?"
Tan Ming assumed he meant money. "Don't worry, sir. If you can cure her, even if it costs us everything, we'll do it."
"It's not about money," Zhu Siqi said. "I travel to treat illnesses not to make money, but to study difficult cases.
"First, you must not tell anyone about what happens during the treatment. Second, if anyone asks who cured her, you must not mention me. Can you guarantee these two points?"
These later became Zhu Siqi's standard conditions whenever he treated someone.
Tan Ming and his wife exchanged a glance. Such conditions were nothing at all. They quickly nodded in agreement.
Zhu Siqi asked Tan Ming's wife to lift her pant legs and began inserting needles into the acupuncture points on her legs. He was still cautious—he didn't directly transmit true qi with his hands, fearing they might later boast about it. Slowly, he guided the true qi into her legs, inch by inch unblocking the meridians. He intended to cure her in one session, so he wouldn't have to return in disguise again.
Now that his Yi Jin One-Origin Technique had reached the sixth level, it flowed far more smoothly than before. Before long, the meridians in her legs were unblocked. She felt it too and said to Tan Ming, "Husband, I think my legs have some feeling."
"Really?" Tan Ming asked excitedly.
"Of course. My soles feel a bit itchy."
"Don't talk," Zhu Siqi said.
Both of them immediately fell silent.
Once the meridians were clear, everything became much easier. Even necrotic muscles would gradually recover. Zhu Siqi then used his true qi to stimulate the dead muscle cells back to life. Altogether, it took just over twenty minutes to complete the treatment.
Pulling out the needles, Zhu Siqi said, "Her meridians are clear now, but she still can't walk yet. Massage her legs frequently. In about a month or so, she should be able to start walking gradually. Here is a packet of pills to soothe the meridians and promote blood circulation—have her take a few each day." He handed Tan Ming a packet of pills.
"Thank you so much! How can we ever repay you?" Tan Ming said emotionally.
"It's nothing," Zhu Siqi replied. "Just remember the two conditions I mentioned—that will be the best repayment."
"How can that be?" Tan Ming insisted. "You cured my wife's paralysis of more than ten years. I—" He immediately gathered all the money in the house. "This isn't much, but please, you must accept it."
"I already said I don't treat illnesses for money," Zhu Siqi said sternly. "Are my words just going in one ear and out the other? Or do you not want her to recover after all?"
"No, no! Of course we want her well!" Tan Ming said hurriedly. "Alright, we agree to your two conditions. We absolutely won't tell anyone—not even if our son asks. Is that alright?"
"Good. Then I'm at ease. I must be going now."
Tan Ming and his wife tried to insist that he stay for a meal, but Zhu Siqi didn't dare. Half of his disguise time was already gone—if it failed, he'd be exposed. He hurriedly left. Tan Ming stood at the doorway as if in a dream. It wasn't until Zhu Siqi had vanished from sight that he came back to his senses.
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